Hey guyz, I was just wondering how to reduce body roll without getting sway bars.

what I was wondering was that if i buy some adjustable struts, such as koni yellows, if I adjust them and make them "stiffer" will that reduce body roll? i know it probably won't help much but i wanna avoid getting sway bars because im not going auto-x or doing anything crazy. i just hate body roll.

thanks for the info in advance.

 

hmm.. thinking no.

sway bars aren't neccessarily just for auto-x... there's no reason why you can't use or have them.
i have them on my car and it's a daily driver.

there's a reason why sway bars are also know as anti-roll bars....

get them.. and be happy.

 

The only way you'll reduce body roll without the use of sway bars is to use very stiff springs. This is bad for your comfort's sake. What's wrong with using sway bars? It's certainly much cheaper than swapping out springs...

 

You could save up for a LONG time and get a custom magneto-rheological shock absorber setup designed for your car... Or you could just spend a couple hundred and slap on the sways. :D For normal street driving on this car I would just go with rear, and not over do the stiffness setting.

 

Also look into the Ingalls rear strut bar some people have had to go to softer settings on the sway bars they have installed. So this does show that the Ingalls part does work to reduce body roll somewhat

 

The TRD sway is not that expensive, and its only about a 20 min, very simlple, install. That's your best bet.

 

Hey guys thanks for all the information!!! i was just wondering because i don't know much about sway bars and i thought they were useless if i didn't do any type of crazy driving...

does any one here have hotchkis sway bars ? are they any good ?

I'm thinking just the rear but im the type of person who likes to have things like this in pairs ..mite as well go front and rear...will i notice a significant difference with both on rather then just one?

 

hmm.. the front sway bar is a pain... i wouldn't bother installing it unless you do auto-x..

i recommend getting the Progress rear sway bar.

 

Stiffening the front sway while keeping the back the same will worsen understeer. stiffening the rear without stiffening the front will induce less understeer and more oversteer. With the amount of understeer a FWD has already, I would definitely do more on the rear. So if you go front, make sure you test and tune so that you dont add more push to the handling. For most street driving, I would probably just go with the TRD rear and not worry as much about the front. Also remember, that the way a sway works is by reducing the independence in the suspension, so dont go too stiff for street driving.

 

Cool thanks for the information buddy.

sorry so many questions but i was just wondering..whats the benefit of having really stiff struts then? why would some one put their struts on the stiffest setting rather then the softest for a more comfortable ride??

Thanks for the reply.

 

I have noticed Oversteer a couple times when I have pushed the tC to its limits. You can just feel the rear of the car ever so slightly sliding outwards, then let off the gas and it comes back into control.

 

Struts and their valving need to be matched with appropriate springs. Struts/shocks are there to control the motion of the springs (some people refer to shocks/struts as "dampers", as they dampen the spring's motion). The settings on adjustable struts are there to enable a specific range of not just comfort versus performance, but also to provide a way to balance front-rear (and even side-side for certain events) chassis tuning for optimal performance. If you've got really stiff springs, there's no strut that will make the ride comfortable. Some people might use the softest setting for normal street driving, then adjust them for more damping when racing.

 

Hey thanks for the information!!

I really appreciate it.

 

So....I am still debating also about the rear Sway Bar....I read everybodys comments....Is really make a HUGE differance?..or is just all in you guys head that it makes a Super Impact on turns etc?...cuz I have an auto and the Rear is 20mm but how does getting a slightly thickness do something???.....doesnt just "better" tires more logical??....

 

coilovers.

Frame braces.

 

yes.. it makes a big difference. auto or not. you'll feel it going into turns

 

Its not just the thickness. It is the way it is manufactured, the materials, etc that can all play a part. And even a slight increase in thickness makes a noticeable difference in torsional strength.

And sure, you can go buy new tires, but when the body rolls hard on a car, you are taking the traction away from the inside tires and relying more on the outsides. The reason you have a sway bar is to counteract this. A stock one sacrifices body roll more to keep some independence in the suspension. So going with a performance one may increase ride harshness to a degree, but prevents body roll better than stock.

The TRD (correct me if I get the numbers a bit off.. going by memory) is not much thicker, but is 39% stiffer than stock on the street setting and over 60% stiffer than stock on the race setting.

 

Very close! Per this page from TRDsparks, it's 39 & 64%, respectively.

 

With all the reports I've seen of snap oversteer in the tC, I'm a little hesitant to go with a stiffer rear sway, since I can't just let off the throttle to bring the rear back in line with a FWD car.

 

Actually I got the Progress Rear Sway...I didnt think it make a diff. Now I love it. .I feel it in the turns and switching lanes on the freeway!...Yea...I suggust that Mod